Looking Through the Veil
by iluminnascent
Summary: [English version for "A Man behind the Veil"] Loki vowed that he would take revenge for what Odin and Thor had done to him. But first, he had to find a way out of this place and the black-haired mortal seemed to know how to release him. # pre-SLASH Loki/Harry. Loki-centric.


**[A/n]:** And finally, I find a beta reader! Thanks to **exaigon** for beta-ing my story. Still, I want to know what you think about this fan fiction, so feel free to leave me a review :).

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**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter or Thor Movie. They belong to their respective owners.

**Warnings:** Post-Hogwarts, Post-Thor Movie, Pre-The Avengers, Pre-SLASH (Loki/Harry).

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"[...] He had the strangest feeling that there was someone standing behind the veil on the other side of the archway. Gripping his hand very tightly, he edged around the dais, but there was nobody there; all that could be seen was the other side of the tattered black veil." —Harry Potter encountering the Veil **[HP5]**

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He remembered how it felt when he fell into the Bifrost. He also remembered the short conversation with Odin and Thor.

He hated Odin as much as he hated Thor; the brother who had always stole everything from him. He hated them and blamed them for everything that happened to him.

But does he still feel that hatred even now when he is not in Asgard? Will he continue to hate his family?

He, Loki the Trickster, would answer with one word: Yes.

Odin the All Father wasn't his father. Frigga wasn't his mother and Thor wasn't really his brother. He was Loki the son of Laufey, a Jötun. His father—who had been murdered by his own hand—was the king in Jötunheimr, the World of Giants. He is not like the other people of Asgard. His existence would never be recognized by anyone in Asgard. In their eyes, he is nothing more than an abomination with the desire to become the king of Asgard; not worthy to be a king.

And because of that, he will continue to hate the Asgardian—Odin and Thor especially—with all his soul and his whole life. He would not let hatred diminish just because he was not in Asgard anymore. Loki vowed that he would take revenge for what Odin and Thor had done to him. But first, he had to find a way out of this place.

Loki remembered the first time he had awoken to find himself floating in the nothingness. He still didn't know how much time had passed since he became trapped in the place where there was no color and the surrounding energy was... off.

At first he hadn't realized there was no one around. There were just the soft whispers that originated from nowhere. He couldn't move at all and it got very tiring.

In fact, he hated the current situation. He hated not being able to do anything except sitting there like a weak mortal beings. For the Nine Worlds! He is a sorcerer! A Jötun! It is humiliating if he cannot remove himself from this miserable existence.

Loki almost gave up hope that he would ever get out before he felt a strange sensation tickling his exposed skin that his armor was not covering. It felt... familiar. Yes. There was a kind of magic—but very weak—around. The energy he had felt!

But this time it was much stronger than usual. And with that magic, slowly, Loki started moving his limbs until he was in a standing position.

At the same time, Loki saw something that appears to his right. It was a transparent layer that resembled a thin veil; enabling him to see outside of where he was trapped. Loki also realized that during the same time, the whispering voices sound louder than usual. But Loki still could not dechiper what they were saying.

Turning his attention to the veil, Loki could see a fairly large room with square-shaped dim lighting and high stone ceiling. There were faint cries and shouts along with flashes of color that piquet his interest. He paused and watched as three men and one woman throwing flashes of colors from small-wooden sticks passed by the Veil. It was as if nobody noticed his existence.

It was not long after that, he saw a dark-haired man staggered in front of the transparent layer; wanted to warn the dark-haired man to stay away, but he could not. He watched as a sickly red light hit the man's midsection and sent him careening through the veil. The brunette floated past him and slowly disappeared; lost in the nothingness. The dark-haired man did not scream or try to ask for help and Loki immediately knew he was dead as there was no life in his grey eyes.

Mortal beings—human, the inner Loki said. Without realizing, his hand reached toward where the mortal being disappeared. The Trickster heard a faint cry behind him and glancing over his shoulder; caught sight of young man screaming behind a transparent layer. Loki watched the figures fighting for a moment longer before the tranparent layer slowly faded away. A pair of bright green eyes full of hurt and shock was the last thing he saw before the surroundings turned into nothingless again.

He felt how he was alone in this place again.

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#

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Loki did not know how long he was lost and could not do anything meaningful in this place. Quite a while ago he came to the conclusion that the flow of time and space did not apply in this place. He felt no hunger nor thirst nor anything else that required his needs. And frankly, it was quite boring.

He could still feel the remnants of the magic that tickles his skin but very weak. He had also felt a foreign entity that did not seem to want to disturb him. It was there several moments before it went away.

Loki hates being stuck in this state. If only he could do something to get out of this unknown place, like he had tried to do since he first stuck here. Unfortunately, no matter how hard he tried, no matter how much magic he used, he could not remove himself from this place.

One question that always occurred to him was how did mortal beings have objects that could keep him like this for such a long time? He had never heard of a prison that kept someone from moving. Compared with a protective barrier created by Odin, he would have to say that this place was much worse. Loki could not even find the weak points of this place.

So how could he get out of this place? He had no plans to stay here forever and forget about the desire to take revenge on Odin and Thor. Their betrayal still hadn't left his mind and he still wanted to hold their power in his own hands.

Loki thoughts came to a halt as the thin transparent veil formed slowly in front of him again. He quickly walked over, faint wrinkles appearing on his forehead when he found a stranger standing in front of him with a thin stick of wood in his hand. Loki knew this figure. It was the same figure he seen before. The mortal being with the pain-filled bright green eyes who had cried when the man fell through the veil.

Loki realized there was a big difference in the figure in front of him now. If he had previously seen the skinny young man with messy black hair, this time he saw a well-built man. The messy black hair still framed the mortal's face but his brilliant green eyes were full of life experiences. Loki realized that the man had the same eyes as Asgard warriors; full of experience from the battlefield and witnessing death.

Loki was stunned. How much time elapsed? How long had he been confined in this place?

"—I wasn't wrong to feel and see that there was someone behind the Veil. Apparently my guess was right."

The Trickster was silently staring at the figure from behind the transparent layer. Was he wrong to assume the human in front of him was talking to him? No. This must be a mistake. It was most likely a coincidence.

"Can you hear me?"

Loki returned his attention to the man and this time he was sure the question was directed to him. Hesitantly, he nodded his head; gaining a faint smile on the mortal's face.

"You can see me." The sentence is a statement and Loki was surprised that he could talk again. If humans could see him, could he hope to get out of this godforsaken place?

"How is it possible? A mortal being like you?"

The messy black haired figure winced but Loki ignored him. "I could see you when I saw Sirius fall into the Veil. At first I thought that it was an illusion. However, I saw you again after the accident when I came back here far more clearly than before and when no one else saw you I figured I was the only one who could. "

Loki looked for signs of lying but found none. "Then, what is this place exactly?" asked Loki. "Why am I here unable to move and with only you able to see me?"

The mortal scratched the back of the head, looking thoughtful. "Unspeakables call that place 'the Veil'," he said. "The Veil is separating layer between the world of dead and the world of living. A person who falls behind the Veil cannot come back. Some people can hear the whispers coming from the Veil because they've lost their loved ones. This is the first time I knew you were stuck there."

"When did you realize I was here?"

Once again the mortal looked thoughtful. "Two years since I moved into this place and twelve years after I first saw you. At first I could only vaguely see through the veil. It looked like smoke in a human figure. This is the first time I can see your figure clearly."

Twelve years? No. It sounds so silly. Loki tried not to show surprise on his face. He stared at the mortal before him. It seems very plausible after seeing the man's physical growth.

The Trickster sighed. "And who are you?" he asked. "Why do you say that only you can see me?"

"Err, my name is Harry." The figure, Harry, said before approaching the Veil.

Loki could hear the whispers around become louder the closer Harry got to the Veil. He can only hope that Harry does not try to step over it. Although Loki did not have any desire for contact with mortal beings, Harry was an exception. He felt the man was different, special compared to ordinary mortals. "I'm Harry. Just Harry. If I could know, who are you? Why are you stuck behind the Veil?"

Loki looked at the bright green eyes in front of him. Who is he? Loki the son of Odin? Or Loki the son of Laufey? No. He refused to recognize either name.

"My name is Loki. Just Loki. I cannot tell you why I came to be in this place," he whispered softly. "Can you get me out?"

Harry was silent.

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#

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In Asgard, Loki is known as a god who is able to manipulate a person just by his words. He can even fool Heimdallr! In Midgard, he is known as the God of Mischief. He did not mind the name because it was true. He could play with one's feelings with ease and without that person ever realizing it was happening. But unfortunately, when he was confronted with a mortal being like Harry, he didn't have to be any of that and he wouldn't use his abilities.

Harry is an enigma to him. He could definitely say that after interacting with the mortal being. Manipulations would not work for the messy black-haired man. Perhaps because of the location or the influence of other things, Loki did not know, but only one thing for sure, Loki could not underestimate Harry.

Harry seemed to know how to release him from this place. Loki was aware of it after Harry repeatedly turned the conversation away from that subject. And Loki does not like that fact. He was desperate to get out of here as soon as possible; breathe the air of freedom and to take back his Tesseract. He could guess where it is located. He could feel it was close.

"... Why do you refuse to tell me the way out of the Veil?" Loki asked shortly after seeing Harry approaching the Veil and sitting down on the stone surface with parchment in hand. "I'm here not to be the rat of your experiment, you know?"

"You aren't my specimen or anything like that, Loki," Harry said looking busy with the sheet of parchment. "I don't know how to get you out."

"Don't lie to me," Loki hisses and reached out to the Veil layer. The hiss was harsher when his fingers felt a shock like Thor's thunder that soon spread throughout his body. Quickly, he withdrew his hand and cast a sharp glance at Harry. "I know you can get me out of here."

Same as before, the conversation always ended in a stalemate when Harry changed the subject by telling him something. The black-haired man always tells him about Teddy Lupin or what's going on around him. Loki quickly concluded one thing: Harry likes to talk about everything that happen, but not himself, and Loki, who is not concerned with the man's reason, chose not to ask anything. Honestly, he doesn't care about anything done to Harry. He just wants to get out of this goddamn mystical veil. And he'll do anything, with any kind of payment as well.

Increasingly over time, Loki realized that Harry was just like him. The man was a wizard, a sorcerer. It explained the power of magic he felt every time Harry approached the Veil.

But Harry had a different kind of magic than his own. He could feel a shock of static electricity every time he tried to deny a magic, other than his own, existed. And every time Harry cast a spell with a wand in front of the Veil, Loki felt the veil become like a wave in the turbulent seas, as if in rebellion.

"What exactly are you doing?" Loki finally could not resist asking to satisfy his curiosity. He could feel as the entity around the veil slowly stopped fighting. "You spend your strength in vain, why do you not try to get me out of here?"

Harry hissed softly with labored breathing, sweat pouring from his temples. "I have not given up trying. And Loki, how many times have I said I do not know how to get you out of the Veil?"

"You're lying," Loki insisted and catching the gaze of Harry. He was a God in Midgard, damn it! He realized what Harry was trying to do. The entities around the veil that had always felt were a kind of spirits that was also stuck in this place, the spirits that no longer had an astral body. Spirits that refuse to leave the world of dead. "I know what you're doing. I know you want to revive someone. Ah, you wish to revive the man that fell through when I first saw you."

Harry turned a sharp gaze onto the Asgardian. "You saw Sirius?" Loki did not answer but Harry already knew. "You saw Sirius fall into the Veil and did nothing?"

"Why would that be my problem?" Loki turned around to ask. "I do not know the people in your life. If I knew, I would not have been able to do anything anyway. Sooner or later, a mortal being like you will die. You... you cannot revive any creature who has met the Death, Harry. It is not possible."

And finally, after looking at each other for a moment, Harry turned and walked away.

#

Loki lost count of how long he was in the Veil again. If the previous arrival of Harry to the Death Chamber was a benchmark in the succession of days, now he could not tell time at all. He found himself returned to solitude. It was no different than before except for his mobility and his ability to hear and see what was happening in the chamber. The footsteps he always heard were not Harry's, they were too heavy. He did not care to see who was coming. He did not care.

'Really?' asked the voice in his mind. Loki moaned softly when the voice came back asking the same thing. Did he really care if Harry never came back? Loki wanted to say out loud that he did not care. But in the end, he chose not to say anything. He also ignored sound of laughter in his mind and the voice calling him a hypocrite.

Loki combed his black hair strand by hand. His armor creaked slightly but he made no move to remove it. With a sigh, the Trickster walked toward the veil. As before, he felt the sting when he touched the lining. However, it felt different if he touched the edge of the Veil when Harry did at the same time. There was no stinging sensation; instead it was soft, similar to touching someone else's skin. Loki did not understand why Harry wasn't sucked into the Veil when it was clear he touched the transparent layer in front of him.

Indeed, Harry was a difficult enigma to solve.

The sound of light footsteps made Loki turn toward the transparent veil. There was no expression on his face when he saw Harry standing in front of him. Fatigue was clearly written in his expression and Harry gave a thin smile. Loki did not smile back.

"Did you miss me?" Harry asked with a soft chuckle that sounded a little forced. "Well, stupid question. Not the right time for jokes, right? Err, nice to see you again after two weeks, Loki."

"It did not feel so long here."

Loki saw Harry roll his eyes before muttering something that Loki couldn't hear. For a moment, Loki let the silence engulf the place before Harry softly cleared his throat. Loki stared at the man in front of him.

"I'll get you out of there."

Those six words were just enough to make one of his eyebrow raise, but not a single sound came from him. He just quietly listened to the explanation from Harry who said he wasn't sure exactly what would happen once he was out.

"I've tried doing this before. Trying to pull out someone who fell into the Veil, I mean," said Harry while playing with a gold ring embedded with a black stone on his finger. Harry was staring at the ring with a concentrated look on his face.

"I did manage to do it once and it coincided with the first time I saw your figure clearly. However, the women I pulled out did not look as I expected. She was in the form of a disembodied spirit before I decided to put her spirit back into the Veil. Since then, I've been trying to figure out how to fix my mistake. I really wanted to pull Sirius from the Veil alive.

"During the two weeks of thinking, I realized my mistake. Nothing can revive a dead person. Including the owner of the Deathly Hallows."

Loki raised an eyebrow. "Deathly Hallows?" he asked, but unfortunately, Harry did not want to answer that question.

"Never mind."

Harry returned to playing with the black ring on his hand. "The important thing now is how to get you out of there. After I realized my mistake and I thought maybe this might work. You still have your whole body in there, right? It could be argued that you're alive, so it also cannot be said you're the one of the dead. I do not know how this could be happen, but I'll find out later. "

Loki did not have time to process what the mortal said because Harry told him to step aside before he had muttered a kind of spell in a different language. Soon, Loki felt the veil turn turbulent again. The whispers grew louder and restless. Loki felt his body being pushed forward and he did not resist the urge.

First, he felt a static electric shock when his fingers touch the Veil layer. But the longer he pushed against the veil, the less he felt the sting. Seconds later, his body pushed hard through the Veil, and he staggered out onto rough stones. He blinked his eyes several times to adjust his eyes when the surface of the cold air stung his face. He grimaced after feeling how tired his body actually was. Loki did not know if his body could feel sick and fatigued by just being in between the boundary of the world of dead and the world of living.

And he also realized that sweat was starting to gather on his brow.

"Welcome back to the world, Loki."

The Trickster's head whipped to the direction of the sound. The corner of his mouth turned down into a grimace when he lifted his eyes and caught sight of Harry standing in front of him. Harry was breathing harshly with sweat pouring down his face and exhaustion etched into the lines on his face. His breath formed a thin cloud of steam every time the black-haired man exhaled into the air that had suddenly dropped several degrees.

Slowly, Loki straightened. For the first time since meeting Harry he could look straight to the mortal without a transparent layer limiting him. Unconsciously, he stretched his hand out and stroked Harry's cheek. His body temperature had always been below the average temperature of the body in general; causing many to shy away from him. But Harry did not try to push him away. The man was silent as he looked at him.

Maybe Harry will forever be an enigma. He is the biggest puzzle he had ever met in his long life. Will he forever be unable to solve the riddle? Ah, never mind he has as much time as he needs. He could solve the puzzle after fulfilling his ultimate goal-seeking and obtaining the Tesseract and trying to make a deal with the Other.

But would Harry have a similar amount of time?

Harry is a mortal being. Human; just like the woman who met Loki in this world. They have short lives. In the blink of an eye, humans will die.

And Loki does not require such creatures in his life.

"Loki ...? Are you all—?"

"—thank you for helping me out of there, Harry," Loki cut Harry off. He withdrew his hand from Harry's face and ignored how he leaned toward it as if he didn't want Loki's hand to go. "I appreciate what you have done and in return, I will spare your life."

And without wasting a single moment, Loki disappeared in front of Harry in the middle of the illusion he created. He didn't even say goodbye to the green-eyed man.

Why ... why did he all of a sudden feel pain in his heart? Why did becoming an immortal in this world sound wrong to him?

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**The end**


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